By Marion Roach Smith
T WO SISTERS, ONE BOOK. That’s the combination that went into Nora and Delia Ephron’s adaptation of Ilene Beckerman’s wonderful little book, Love, Loss, and What I Wore. The book is a slender volume of drawings and diary-like entries about clothes she wore to the high emotional days of her life. A huge break-out success when first published in 1995, when the Ephron sisters decided to adapt the book for the stage they decided to broaden it, and sent out an email questionnaire to everyone they knew seeking true clothing-memory tales. Gee, I wish they’d written to me. I could have sent them directly into my closet of many women.
This is not the first time the sisters have collaborated, and they talk about that in several recent radio interviews that you can listen to with Leonard Lopate, and with Joan Hamburg. Nora says things such as that if you are sisters, “you not only share half a brain,” but share all “the same cultural references.” Oh yeah. We knew that here at TSP, and we love to take on the she said, she said aspects of life’s greatest collaboration whenever and however we can.
The play has been workshopped in New York City in the last month as a fundraiser for Dress for Success, a nonprofit that promotes economic independence for disadvantaged women by providing attire and career support. Featuring five actors per night, those on stage to date have included America Ferrara, Tyne Daly, Blythe Danner, Debi Mazur, Kristen Johnston, Rosie O’Donnell, Parker Posey and Kathy Najami.
According to Nora Ephron, it’s sort of “The Vagina Monologues but without the vaginas.” Let’s wish it that kind of worldwide success.
In other theater headlines: Art imitates like, or so I’ve always been told. That, and that imitation is the sincerest form of flattery. Those two bromides being true, imagine how delighted I was to read a review of a play whose title could have been ripped from our TSP headlines. It’s of Kathryn Chetkovich’s new work, “She Said, She Said.”
Road trip, anyone?
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First time here? Here's the idea: TSP is a network of blogs about the many facets of the word sister, and the concept of sisterhood. A sisterhood of sister blogs, you could say. Whatever sister means to you, from identical twin to sister-in-law (or in-friendship or in-feminism), we’ll make room to listen in about it or express it on TSP. Like the slogan up top says, “Don’t you have something to say to your sister?” We've got galleries of art and literature by and about sisters, and a Sisterpedia of sisterly trivia...but now we're getting ahead of ourselves. The quick study: 
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No surprise, really, that sisterhood, often life’s longest relationship and always one of its most important, has been the Muse for so much creative self-expression by women, and also by men. 
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That book sounds fabulous. And so does the play. Both are now on my list!
Clothes really are like characters in the stories of our lives. Being in the process of moving, I’ve been perusing the various players in my closet. Here are a few:
Top shelf, stage left: The Handbag Retirees. These are the hard working character actors of a lady’s life. They lean into each other sharing tales of glory from their days in service. Wrinkles, tatters, scratches and stains and worn as badges of honor testifying to their adventures. Occasionally I share a long glance with each one and remember its days as my right hand accessory.
Hanging, stage right: The Barre Flies. This is a collection of limited edition dresses purchased for a particular event, worn once and then retired. Most are unwashed and are thus still infused with the spirit of the wedding, gala or other formal affair that elicited its presence. In this ridden-hard-and-put-away-wet spirit, I like to think of these as the bombshells whose beauty has faded and imagine them sorting through pants pockets looking for cash or – if they’re lucky – a pack of smokes.
Center stage, behind a curtain of pants: The Chorus of Ill-Fitting Shoes. These are the Barre Flies’ evil sidekicks. Pinchy, tortuous… they are placed out of site so as not to frighten my bunions.
As an aside, the Dress for Success foundation is a wonderful group. When my days of having to dress “professionally” were done, I donated many a power suit and pump and know that they found a better role with a sister (without bunions) in need.
Welcome, Missy. Sounds like quite the closet! See you soon again, I hope.